Hi I am pretty new to this but in desperate need of some good advice. I recently received two job offers, one with a big firm, hours 8:30-5pm and good benefits, but inflexible work hours. The second is with a very small firm of two attorneys, but the hours are very flexible (e.g. 7am-3pm) and I was told that I would not need to put in any overtime. The pay for both is the same. I had hopes to attend law school part-time starting next year (LSAT in October). I am unsure right now if it would be better to take the job with the flexible hours and no overtime, or the big firm and possible job growth and reputation, possible overtime, etc..in regards to my future with law school. Any advice I could get on this would be wonderful and well appreciated!

mclean wrote:Hi I am pretty new to this but in desperate need of some good advice. I recently received two job offers, one with a big firm, hours 8:30-5pm and good benefits, but inflexible work hours. The second is with a very small firm of two attorneys, but the hours are very flexible (e.g. 7am-3pm) and I was told that I would not need to put in any overtime. The pay for both is the same. I had hopes to attend law school part-time starting next year (LSAT in October). I am unsure right now if it would be better to take the job with the flexible hours and no overtime, or the big firm and possible job growth and reputation, possible overtime, etc..in regards to my future with law school. Any advice I could get on this would be wonderful and well appreciated!

I worked before law school and can tell you that flexible work hours rule. I didn't have to put in any overtime at my small firm either. Also, a small firm (mine was around 8 attorneys) allows you to do a lot more than just cite check or proofread. You get to work on the matters more directly. Also, a two-attorney office means a great variety of cases whereas you might be stuck in one department of the big firm. If you want to keep a social life and just get some experience, this is the way to go.

If you're looking for an "in" to get a job in the future, you need to start thinking about what kind of lifestyle you want after you graduate from law school. If you want a big firm job and you think working at the big firm while going to law school part time will get your foot in the door, pick the big firm.

The small firm has two attorneys and they only work on patent prosecution, trademark and litigation. The big firm is all types of IP. They both have international clients, but the big firm has an international office. Incidentally, I have no interest in IP but I do in International Law. Unfortunately, going full-time is not an option for me since I have pending school loans from undergrad and a mortgage. I am not sure if I can get ‘in’ on a job with either firm, but that’s something I will have to find out internally in the long run.As of now, I decided to speak with the HR person from the big firm and ask her frankly if they would be willing to give me flexible hours next year when I want to start law school and go from there.Thanks for the advice! Feel free to share more thoughts if you like.

mclean wrote:Hi I am pretty new to this but in desperate need of some good advice. I recently received two job offers, one with a big firm, hours 8:30-5pm and good benefits, but inflexible work hours. The second is with a very small firm of two attorneys, but the hours are very flexible (e.g. 7am-3pm) and I was told that I would not need to put in any overtime. The pay for both is the same. I had hopes to attend law school part-time starting next year (LSAT in October). I am unsure right now if it would be better to take the job with the flexible hours and no overtime, or the big firm and possible job growth and reputation, possible overtime, etc..in regards to my future with law school. Any advice I could get on this would be wonderful and well appreciated!

Same money? Take the small firm. Unless the "big firm" is BIG LAW then I don't think it makes much difference.

Imagine the stress of starting your 1L year, wondering each day if you are going to make it to class on time that night, potentially missing classess, falling behind, etc. This is all stress you won't need/should avoid.